Montagnard refugees in Thailand are in a very dangerous situation, especially those on the wanted list of the Vietnamese communist police.
Voice of America VOA reported on June 25 “Thailand confirmed the arrest of Y Quynh Bdap at Vietnam’s request.” The news said that a Thai court issued an arrest warrant for Y Quynh Bdap “according to the extradition request of the Vietnamese government, based on the Vietnamese court’s judgment that Bdap committed terrorism.”
It is known that Y Quynh Bdap was arrested by Thai Police on June 11, on charges of overstaying. Accordingly, Y Quynh Bdap, 32 years old, is a founding member of the organization Montagnards Stand for Justice (MSFJ) – an organization specializing in fighting for human rights and religious freedom of indigenous peoples in Vietnam’s Central Highlands. He was persecuted by the Vietnamese government, following his activities to promote human rights and religious freedom of the Montagnards, in the Central Highlands region.
In 2018, he brought his family to seek refuge in Thailand, and was granted refugee status by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), waiting to settle in a third country.
Many international human rights organizations have spoken out, expressing concern about the Thai government’s arrest and deportation of Y Quynh Bdap. At the same time, there are concerns that he will face a prison sentence of up to 10 years on charges of terrorism related to the attack on two local government headquarters in Dak Lak province in June 2023. But Y Quynh Bdap denied all the charges against him in the case just mentioned.
Thai Police General Khemmarin Hassiri, advisor to the Deputy Chief of Thai Police, said that Y Quynh Bdap’s case has been scheduled by Thailand’s criminal court, and is expected to go to trial on July 15.
Voice of America VOA said they contacted the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hanoi and asked for comments on the above confirmation from Thai authorities, but up to now they have not received a response.
It is known that this arrest shocked the Vietnamese refugee community in Thailand, especially the Central Highlands refugee community in this country. They called on human rights organizations and international media to call on Thailand not to force Y Quynh Bdap to repatriate, out of concern for his safety.
MSFJ’s co-founder Y Phic Hdok made a statement:
“We call on Vietnam and Thailand to carefully consider and respect human rights.”
“It is unfair to accuse him [Y Quynh Bdap] of residing illegally, when he has a legitimate reason to seek asylum.”
Y Phic Hdok said that if he was forced to return to his homeland, it would be extremely dangerous for Y Quynh Bdap’s life.
VOA said that Asia Director of Human Rights Watch (HRW) Elaine Pearson, wrote on page X (old Twitter social network) on June 23, affirming that:
“HRW is very concerned about the safety of Y Quynh Bdap, and about his ability to receive a fair trial in Vietnam.”
Many international human rights organizations have simultaneously expressed “deep concern” about the Thai government’s arrest of Y Quynh Bdap. At the same time, they call for his release “immediately and unconditionally” and definitely not extraditing him to Vietnam. According to VOA, Thailand and Vietnam are in the process of negotiating an official extradition agreement in the next few months.
Thailand has long been unsafe for political refugees from Vietnam, with a series of high-profile kidnappings by Vietnamese Communist security. The kidnapping of journalist Truong Duy Nhat in 2019, and the kidnapping of blogger Duong Van Thai on April 13, 2023, are typical examples, strongly opposed by human rights defenders./.
Tra My – Thoibao.de
